In hospitality, its important to remember that you can't teach personality! When interviewing, do your best to allow your prospect to be comfortable and let their personality shine. Ask questions to find out what they are passionate about, if they talk about something that is dear to their heart with no energy behind it, think twice before hiring them.
Be creative with the questions you ask to allow your candidate to open up and give you insight into how they will be with customers. One of my interview questions is "What is your pet peeve when you go out to eat(or stay at a hotel, just insert your business here)?" Most people can answer that question freely - but it lets them open up and takes the pressure off since you aren't asking about them directly. It also lets you get insight into how much they really know your industry.
Common sense is so important in the hospitality field - you need to be sure you have open ended questions so you can give your prospect the opportunity to speak. You need to pay attention to HOW they answer your questions and how they think. Really, the right answer shouldn't be what you are focusing on, it should be attitude and thought processes.
Once you have hired your crew it is imperative that you give them proper training. Training materials are a must! Don't expect your crew to come in, take notes and be able to just be on their own. You need to give them something they can reference when they have a question. Not only that, it is a tool for you to refer to when an employee says, "I didn't know".
You or your training crew must go through the manual with your new employees. Lets face it, people don't read training manuals if they don't feel they have to! Give them the information before the first day and ask specific questions once they arrive for work. When you do this they will realize that you are serious about building a great team.